Skepticamp: an all-ages event for engaging with critical thinking

12:30pm - Welcome by Kate Lovelady of the Ethical Society and Mike McKay of the SSSL
12:45 - Bill Juedemann of AU on "Church/State Separation"
1:00 - Mike McKay on "Science or Pseudoscience: How to Know"
1:30 - Ben Schuldt on "Naturalistic Immortality"
2:00 - Erich Vieth on "Matthew Hutson's new book: The 7 Laws of Magical Thinking: How Irrational Beliefs Keep Us Happy, Healthy, and Sane."
2:30 - Break (soft drinks provided)
3:00 - Brian Vandenberg on "Soul to Self: The History of the Modern Idea of Self"
3:30 - Brad Corbin on "Evangelical Christian Memes"
4:00 - Alice Sanvito on "Skepticism and Pain"
4:30 - Phil Ferguson on "Investing Skeptically: How to use your skeptical skills and avoid bad investments"
5:00 - Done!

SkeptiCamp stands as a unique model for conferencing among skeptics — a model that focuses on providing each of us a rich avenue to gain proficiency in the skills and knowledge in the domains of critical thinking and science-based skepticism. Last year's SkeptiCamp StL was a rousing success, featuring 125 attendees from all over the greater St Louis region.

SkeptiCamp is free to attend—you ‘pay’ by becoming an engaged participant. You can offer a short talk on a topic in which you demonstrate to your peers your ability to apply the tools of critical thinking and skeptical inquiry.* You may engage with your fellow participants in further questioning or friendly socialization. You can donate an hour or two providing child care for attendees.** Email skepticalsocietystl@gmail.com for more info. You are also welcome to make a cash donation to our Paypal account here: DONATE (http://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=DL26ZH73VWLT2)

To keep these events substantive, the SkeptiCamp model does make two important requests of us. First, those of us giving talks must take questions during our talks when prompted by the politely raised hands of our fellow participants. Second, SkeptiCamp asks that speakers be prepared to provide a source on any claim likely to be challenged. We must guard against the damage of misinformation.

Tearing down the barriers to events that can make us better skeptics is what SkeptiCamp is all about. Join with us in this ambitious experiment to share what you know and to learn from your peers. You might even have fun doing so!

http://images4.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20130124200424/skepticamp/images/0/00/SkeptiCamp5280-icon.png *Past topics have included sharing personal experiences with superstition among fellow nurses, critical analysis of methods of interpreting data gathered on racial profiling by the StL area police forces, and even live demonstration stabbing herself with acupuncture needles.

**If you have a particular activity you'd like to share with the children, such as a home science experiment, or a whodunit mystery for the kids to solve, let us know!